A/N: Sorry for the delay in posting the LAST chapter of Worth the Risk! The Website had a glitch this past week or so that prevented me from posting it but it appears to be now fixed. I hope you enjoy it!
EPILOGUE:
Eleven Years Later
In the daytime, the platforms between 9 and 10 was a seething mass of humanity. Everyone, witches, wizards, Muggle-born, from all walks of life were shoulder to shoulder, in each other's faces, no personal space, and no bloody exceptions.
But now, at the beginning of the start of term for most students who were due to head back to Hogwarts today on the Hogwarts Express, there was a shift in space between the people, and somehow that made it all the more awkward for Tonks and Lupin to navigate through the crowded masses.
When it was crowded, you took in no information about anyone, they were just things in your way. Moving, smelling, awkward, and rude things.
Now the faces of the city were looking at Nymphadora Tonks-Lupin. She felt it.
Thinking about her. She could hear their thoughts. Judging her and her little family. Judging the thirty-seven-year-old witch that normally went unnoticed in this throng.
Perhaps it was her wavy light ash brown colored hair that caused them to stare, considering most here had seen her wear shades of maroon pinks and they weren't used to the more mature change these days, before Tonks had to remind herself that this was a perfectly normal hair color for a woman of thirty-six years of age to have on a daily, day to day basis, or perhaps it was the fact that she was struggling to keep an eye on her eleven-year-old son.
Tonks scanned the crowd, looking for a bright tuft of light brown hair flecked with streaks of bright turquoise, with their seven-year-old daughter, Hope, clutching onto the back of her black leather jacket for support, not wanting to lose sight of either of her parents in this massive crowd.
Tonks shot back her own stares towards all these strangers, silently challenging either one of these other parents to dare to say something as she looked at them, forming opinions, deciding on the safest place to stand, nearer to who, further from who was a threat, who wasn't at all.
Then she realized her judgments were based on how well the persons were dressed and suddenly, Tonks felt ashamed, looking down at her outfit and scrunched her nose in scrutiny, though she thought it looked fine.
Nothing out of the ordinary with her clothing today. Black leather jacket, dark blue silk blouse, black pencil skirt, and black tights, and black boots. A simple black messenger bag slung over her shoulder; her wand concealed inside.
You'd never know among a slew of Muggles walked a wizarding family.
The only telltale that something was amiss was occasionally, out of the front pocket of the woman's black leather jacket, a tiny twig-like creature occasionally poked its head out and looked around.
"C'mon, Lea, don't do this," Tonks scolded lightly as the tiny Bowtruckle, now browning and drooping with old age, blew a raspberry at the noise and looked around the crowded platform with beady narrowed eyes, seemingly in poor spirits at having his mid-morning nap interrupted.
Tonks stifled her groan of frustration and let out a sigh at the Bowtruckle's ornery antics and reached up with the delicate pad of her index finger and stroked the tiny Bowtruckle's leaves as a show of affection.
"Is that them?" Hope squeaked, the seven-year-old's voice ringing in her mother's eardrums as she craned her neck to keep Teddy in her line of sight, while at the same time to try not to lose track of Teddy.
"Yeah, I think it is. C'mon, love, or we'll be late, and Dad is going to kill us if we miss seeing your brother off for the first time!" Tonks murmured quietly as at that exact moment, with a whine and a displacement of air, the Hogwarts Express arrived almost the instant she and her little family went through the gates between platforms nine and ten, with Tonks doing it at a bit of a run with Hope since her daughter was nervous.
Tonks panted with the effort to run through this thick din of people, the place packed with parents just like her and Remus come to see their children off to another start of term at Hogwarts, though for their Teddy, it was his first, and the proud parents wouldn't miss it for the world.
"Are we going to have dinner at Uncle Ollie's house tonight?" Hope asked, well, hopefully.
She loved spending time with Ollie and Norah and had a rather adorable crush on their only child, Rhys, who was Teddy's age, a strapping kid with the best traits inherited from either of his parents at eleven years old. Rhys saw the seven-year-old girl as more than a pest but loved her still.
Tonks chuckled, thinking fate maybe had something in mind for those two as well, just as it had for her and Remus eleven years ago.
How the man had saved her life on multiple occasions, and they had bonded over learning one another's fears when Remus helped her repel that boggart at the old Order's headquarters, of all things, and now look!
With Hope's determination, as strong as her mother's, and her intelligence, which came from both of her parents, but particularly Remus, it was more than a definite possibility.
"Yes, we are, love. Sirius and Harry and the Weasleys are coming tonight, too, I think. They can't wait to see you again," Remus answered his daughter, scooping up the seven-year-old little witch and proudly setting her on his shoulders, tickling her sides as their daughter squealed in delight and clutched onto tufts of her father's hair for support. "They want to see how much you've grown now that you're seven years old!" he teased, glancing towards his wife with a smile on his lips, their daughter's birthday had been two days ago.
"But they only just saw me two days ago, Daddy! I can't have grown that much in one day," Hope pondered, furrowing her little dark brows together in contemplative thought as she rested her chin on her father's head, adorably scrunching her nose.
Of their two children, their Teddy was the only one who had inherited their mother's Metamorphmagus abilities. Tonks exchanged a glance with Remus out of the corner of her eyes and let a giggle slip past her lips. Hope was ever the sensible one, really.
"Really? Has it only been just two days? But you seem so much older already," Remus retorted, only half-joking as he reached up and tousled Hope's hair affectionately, before letting out a groan as he set her down.
Hope bounded forward on the heels of her shoes before either Tonks or Lupin had time to think about stopping their daughter as she bolted to try to catch up to her older brother. Tonks furrowed her brows and skittishly scanned the crowd and let out a yelp as Hope, a spitting image of her mother in every likeness, let go of her hand and darted forward into the crowd, having seemingly spotted them.
"Wait!" Tonks called out and stomped her foot in a moment of frustration and huffed, her fingers curling around the strap of her black bag for support as she bit the wall of her cheek. "Hope! Teddy! Both of you stay close, I don't want to lose you!" she shouted, raising her voice to ensure she was heard over the collective mumbling and goodbyes of the parents seeing their children off on the Hogwarts Express. She sighed.
A reassuring hand on her shoulder instantly calmed Tonks, and she did not even have to swivel her head to the left to know it was Remus.
Tonks turned her head to look at her husband, who was shaking his head at her, and allowed a small laugh to escape from his lips.
"There's still time, Dora. The train doesn't leave for another ten minutes, and it's not like we have to go very far to get there, it's right there," he chuckled, shaking her head at Tonks's concern for their children. "Let her do what she wants, and the same applies to Teddy, but right now, we need to find the others," Remus murmured lowly, almost whispering it into the shell of her ear, which elicited a tremor of delight down Tonks's spine. Remus John Lupin, ever the voice of reason in their long marriage.
Remus had been a wonderful father to Teddy and to Hope when she had come into the world, their second pregnancy planned, considering Teddy hadn't been born with any of Remus's lycanthropic features, the night Tonks had found out she was pregnant with their second child, she and Remus had stayed up until the dawn nearly discussing it, and as a consequence, her poor husband had overslept and was more than late for his first period of Defense Against the Dark Arts class, though his students had been incredibly forgiving.
Ultimately, he had been overjoyed at the idea of expanding their little family, and Teddy having a sibling relatively close in age to keep him company, and in the end, both proud parents had decided that fate held the baby's future in its hands, as it did with every child in every mother's womb. Fate was such a mysterious and wonderful thing, such a truly divine concept, especially in a circumstance such as theirs.
After the long talk, Tonks had been exhausted, curling up in Remus's arms as they lay in bed, her head leaning against his chest, listening to the slow rhythm of his heartbeat.
He had been supportive throughout her second pregnancy, more so than she could have possibly hoped for, and now look at the two of them.
Proud parents to Teddy Remus Lupin and Hope Elizabeth Lupin.
Whenever she watched him read to their children or teach them something new, her heart swelled to burst.
Being a wife, but more importantly, a mother to their two children was more amazing and incredible than she could have ever imagined. Mrs. Weasley had told her there was nothing more important in this world once your children were in this world, caring for them, and loving them.
Fate had smiled on the two of them, but only after she had exercised her will to make that happen and had pursued life with Remus. Fate and free will weren't absolutes.
Tonks knew this well. They did not cancel one another out, as Tonks had once believed. They worked together to form each person's life, and this year, just like all the others, she and her husband had a life worth celebrating over, thanking Merlin and their friends and families for believing in the pair of them when the rest of their society hadn't.
"C'mon, Rem," Tonks murmured under her breath, repressing the urge to roll her eyes as she heard Teddy and Hope's shrieks. "The Doomsayers departed, we'd better make sure they don't start anything," she sighed, though she was unable to stop the soft grin from creeping onto her face as she caught sight of two familiar faces, the same people that they had been looking for the better part of fifteen minutes.
Remus nodded, a smile of his own etched on his lined features and Tonks thought her husband really did look better and much younger whenever he smiled, and she was glad ever since she had come into his life all those years ago, he smiled for her more often.
She gave her husband's hand a light, reassuring squeeze and dragged him forward towards the noise, just in time to see Teddy in a heated debate with none other than one of Ollie's distant relatives and the last Brennan aside from Ollie himself, a man by the name of Greg and his wife, Rena, and their son, an eight-year-old who looked more translucent than pale, almost like a ghost, and on the verge of a fight.
To his immediate left and backing his friend up, was Rhys Brennan, Oliver, and Norah's son, also attending his first year of Hogwarts alongside Teddy. His parents were eyeballing the scene with minor looks of amusement intermingled with utter disbelief.
Tonks shot her best mate a quizzical look and a raised eyebrow and communicated with the man in their shared impossible telepathy.
What the bloody hell is going on? Tonks questioned him.
But Ollie merely shook his head and carded a finger through his thick tuft of short black hair, motioning with his head for Tonks to simply watch.
It's good to see you too, T, he joked. I don't know which one of them started it, but let's see how these two handles it.
Tonks gave a curt nod of her head and glanced at Remus out of the corner of her eye, noticing the Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor was looking suddenly exasperated, pinching at the front of his temples with his thumb and forefinger, a light blush speckling along his cheeks.
His wife knew the truth. She knew what he was thinking without even having to dip into the man's mind, that it was just the first day of term, Teddy's first year at Hogwarts, and already, their son had made a rival, it seemed, in the Brennan boy.
The wife and mother let out a sigh and briefly lifted her gaze and glanced at Norah, who held an equal look of exasperation on her face, though the moment the blonde werewolf sensed someone staring at her, she lifted her chin and her hardened gaze softened considerably as she looked upon her best friend.
Tonks, it's good to see you and Remus, she communicated, her shimmering pale blue orbs darting from Tonks and Remus and back towards their sons.
Tonks offered a nod though offered up no retort and the pair of mothers swiveled their heads back in the direction of Teddy Lupin.
"What's—what's wrong with him, Mr. Brennan? He's just staring at me!" Teddy challenged hotly, nervously glancing towards Ollie and Norah, as Hope moved to stand in front of her mother and let out a whimper.
Tonks sighed and rested both of her hands on either side of her daughter's shoulders, seemingly nervous that discourse was going to break out. Greg and Rena Brennan's son, Bryce, not that much older than Teddy, maybe a year or two ahead of their son in Hogwarts was staring almost blankly at Teddy, offering up no verbal insult or quip.
At least, not at first. And then—
"Freak! Werewolf!" he shouted.
Teddy reeled backward in surprise, his face flushed in outrage and utter shock. "You watch your mouth! I wouldn't be talking about anybody's condition, tiny! You're such a jerk, you pasty unicorn! You don't know who you're messing with! My dad's the Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor, and my mum's an Auror! I—if you don't take that back, then you'll be bloody sorry!" Teddy bellowed, glowering at Greg and Rena's son, who barely came up to Teddy's nose, reaching for his wand, and that was when his father decided to interfere to save themselves the further embarrassment.
Tonks watched, drawing in a sharp breath that pained her lungs as Remus stepped forward, a muscle in his jaw twitching, and she swore she heard their son whimper as the shadow of the Wolf flitted across her husband's scarred face as he grew stern and firm.
"Teddy. That's enough," he scolded firmly, placing a strong hand on his son's shoulder and giving it a light squeeze. "Lower your wand. The term hasn't even started yet and already, you've…made a friend," he murmured, lifting his gaze, and jutting his chin out to regard Ollie's distant relatives, who were sneering at Remus, Tonks, Ollie, and Norah.
Ollie, Tonks couldn't help but notice, was looking particularly angered and embarrassed, his face drained of color.
His entire body was shaking with the effort to restrain himself and Tonks swore she heard her best mate growl trying to resist starting a full-on brawl here in front of the Hogwarts Express.
Greg Brennan, Ollie's cousin, if Tonks was correct, merely proceeded to smirk at the set of parents and their children and the corners of his mouth twitched upwards in a twisted and vile smirk.
"Bryce. Stop. You know it's not polite to make fun of your inferiors. Especially when they're grossly inadequate as these four."
That was the breaking point of her patience as Tonks seethed, clenching her teeth and her fists in the effort to remain silent and wait like a polite adult to see how their children would have handled this argument.
Any insults that were thrown at her, Tonks could handle them and brush them off, but go after her husband and her children and her friends and their son, that was bloody it.
Tonks balled her hands into fists and rolled her neck to crack it, her temper, sadly of which Teddy had inherited from both her and his father, threatening to consume her as she could hold her tongue no longer, having waited to see what Teddy would do, with gritted teeth.
"Get lost or get hit, buddy, it's your choice," she said, snarling, cracking her knuckles to emphasize her point.
Ollie's cousin, Greg, turned towards Tonks and looked down his nose at the Auror with a sniff of disapproval and sneered.
"Anytime you're ready, I'd welcome the chance to silence you, Mrs. Lupin…cavorting and mating with werewolves," he spat, disgusted. "And I thought someone of your skills could sink no lower, Nymphadora."
His face was pulled taut with rage as his sharp, hawklike gaze flitted towards Norah and Ollie, who both cringed.
The Auror waited to see what Ollie's wife would do, but the blonde werewolf merely stiffened and reached up a hand to tuck back a wisp of her stray blonde pixie cut that had fallen out of place.
Tonks stared, hardly daring to believe it, blinking owlishly at Norah.
In times past, she would have thought the former Gryffindor wouldn't have hesitated to grow her fangs and dig them into Ollie's cousin's neck, but over the years of being married to the man and now a mother to their son had mellowed her out considerably, which was a good thing, she knew.
Tonks gritted her teeth and felt her hand hover over the main compartment of her black bag, the fingers of her wand hand twitching as she fought the urge to dive into her bag for her wand.
Ollie's nervous gaze flitted between the two parents and sighed. "Ugh, T, please don't do this, Greg isn't worth it, he's my problem to deal with, Tonks, not yours," Ollie murmured under his breath, shooting his cousin and his wife a venomous glower, coming to stand next to Tonks and gingerly tugged on the sleeve of her jacket, trying to pull her away from his first cousin. "Let's go, let's get out of here, we don't need to do this in front of our kids, T! Think about what kind of example you're setting, Tonks!"
"Ollie, it's okay! Let me handle this creep! This guy obviously has a problem and I'm going to solve it for him, aren't I?" she growled, lunging towards Greg Brennan and she very likely would have succeeded had Ollie not bolted at that exact second and wrapped his strong arms around her waist, effectively preventing Tonks from reaching her intended target.
Though before Tonks could open her mouth to violently protest that Ollie let her go, that she was going to teach this scumbag who worked alongside her in a different department at the Ministry a lesson he and his miserable bully of a son wouldn't forget, her husband's calm but firm voice spoke up, the edges of Remus's voice clipped and hardened.
"Settle down, all of you," the Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor commanded, slipping into the tone he used when dealing with problematic students at Hogwarts with relative ease. "Whatever problem you two are having, Dora, Mr. Brennan, and you too, Teddy, and Bryce, you should ask yourselves if this confrontation is worth it because the only thing you'll succeed in doing is creating a scene in front of these people here to see their children off to school," Remus growled, his hand hovering inside of his brown jacket, and she knew he was resisting drawing his wand.
Tonks felt her shoulders slump in defeat. He was right, as always. She let out a haggard sigh as she turned away, hearing Ollie breathe an audible sigh of relief.
"C'mon, guys, let's…go over there."
She did not bother looking back behind her over her shoulder as she pursed her lips into a thin line and bit the wall of her cheek, as she placed a gentle hand on Teddy's shoulder and gave him a gentle nudge forward and steered Hope towards a nearby table.
"That jerk," she hissed through gritted teeth, still utterly fuming in her anger, letting go of Hope and Teddy's shoulders as she collapsed onto the table's bench and propped her elbows upon the table, resting her cheek in her fists. "That kid doesn't know who he's messing with, does he, Ted?" she asked, her frown slowly fading as her gaze flitted towards her son. "You could get him still from here at this range if you hexed him now before that lot moves any further away. The Bat Bogey Hex, just like I taught you…." She murmured darkly through her clenched teeth, glowering at the boy.
"Dora!" Remus snapped, sounding firm and on the brink of exasperation at now having to be harsh to his wife in addition to their children. "We are not encouraging this kind of behavior, love! Think what kind of a fine example you'd be setting for Ted and Hope if you started a brawl in front of the Hogwarts Express before term starts!" he barked.
Tonks sighed in defeat and mutely nodded. "I'm not encouraging it, I'm just saying!" She sighed. "I'm sorry, Rem," she apologized, shooting her husband a pained look as she pulled Hope close and rubbed her shoulders, sensing their daughter was upset.
She was easily emotional and easily upset, just like her mum, Tonks thought.
Remus nodded silently, his firm expression slowly fading and softening as he looked at his wife. "You were just looking out for our children, Dora," he murmured, coming over to sit next to his wife. "That's all that counts. I shouldn't be so reactionary," he said softly.
Tonks nodded and lifted her chin to meet Remus's gaze, and slowly turned her head when she noticed Ollie and Norah steering their son towards the table to join the little family, much in the same manner as she had guided Hope and Teddy to the table seconds ago.
She chuckled as she noticed Hope's bright hazel eyes light up with intrigue as their daughter laid eyes on Ollie and Norah's son, Rhys, a strapping young boy of eleven, and the spitting image of both his parents, having inherited his father's thick head of black hair and most of Norah's facial features.
Except for his blue eyes. Those solely came from Ollie. Tonks felt the corners of her mouth twitch as she thought of all her best mate and the blonde werewolf had endured over the last few years and was happy the pair of them had found peace in one another and a life of happiness.
Their son had been a surprise, unplanned, but a welcome one, at that, and Tonks could not be happier for the both of them.
Tonks lifted her chin and smiled at her best mate, who returned the gesture and made no move to remove his hand from his wife's shoulder, the glint from the gold of their wedding bands shimmering in the sunlight shining down this morning on the platform.
The train would be leaving soon in a few minutes, but the families still had about five minutes to spend with their children.
She was pulled from the silent moment with her friend when she heard Hope let out a squeak of delight and bolted from her spot to run and envelope Rhys in a hug, much to the Brennan boy's chagrin.
Hope Elizabeth Lupin had definitely taken after both of her parents in terms of her agility and balance, though it still scared Tonks whenever the girl bolted to her feet like that, considering Hope had also inherited her mother's natural talent for clumsiness.
"Please be careful, Hope! I don't want you to break your leg or worse if you trip!" Tonks called, still resting her cheek in her fist, trying her absolute hardest to sound firm, but looking at her seven-year-old daughter, it was hard to keep any kind of stern composure.
Hope was the most beautiful little girl either her or Remus had ever seen. Her hair tumbled down her back in natural waves and ringlets a light natural ash brown color, Remus's hair color, and her wide, almond-shaped pale gray orbs dominated her heart-shaped face. Her mother's eyes.
Hope was short for her age, yet another trait inherited from her mother, and slender, carrying herself with dignity and self-proclaimed authority beyond Hope's seven years.
Tonks felt her heart painfully give a clench as she watched Hope limp slightly, the result of an accident when Tonks had been teaching her daughter a year ago to ride a broomstick so she'd have a leg up on the other children when it came time for her to attend Hogwarts and sit through her first Flying Class with old Madame Hooch, and she had fallen off and had broken her leg.
Something Tonks wondered if she would ever be able to forgive herself for. She doubted it.
Hope, Merlin bless that sweet child, bore no ill will towards her mother, and had said it was an accident when she had woken up in bed later that evening.
Remus had mended it considerably well, all things considered, neither he nor Tonks were certified Healers, but their daughter still walked with a slight limp.
That was the only imperfection in their girl's entire body, a reminder of the cruelty and pain that did indeed exist in this world, and must exist, for without darkness for comparison, the light was just a flicker of a common candle.
Hope didn't blame her mum for it, though, and whenever Ollie and Norah came to visit, and she saw how Norah was able to have a successful and happy life with her limp, the results of old battle wounds that never fully healed, it always seemed to cheer their daughter up, which Tonks was immensely grateful for.
Tonks always felt a slight twinge of heartache whenever she saw their daughter limp, but it always passed quickly.
Now was no exception. Hope Elizabeth Lupin was just as strong as her mum, like any other child, and needed no one's pity, particularly not that of her mother's. She sighed.
Norah noticed Tonks looking and smiled at Hope when the blonde werewolf heard Hope sniff in disdain as she practically dragged her and Ollie's son Rhys back towards the table to sit with their parents.
"Four years is too long, Daddy!" Hope pouted, sticking out her bottom lip in an adorable little pout and scrunching her nose.
It was Teddy, however, the wonderful big brother that he was, that came to his little sister's rescue.
"It'll fly by before you know it, Hope," Teddy grinned, shooting his little sister a lopsided crooked grin as her brother rested a hand on his sister's shoulder and gave it a squeeze. "Then you'll be in Hufflepuff with me," he added, a hint of smugness and pride laced throughout his features.
Rhys Brennan sneered, though it wasn't a smirk of arrogance, but pride as he scrunched his nose and shot the Lupin children a look of incredulity. "What makes you think she'll be in Hufflepuff? She could be in Slytherin like I'm going to be," he grinned, swiveling his head to look towards his father, of whom had draped his arm around Norah's shoulder and was looking unsure whether to laugh or steer the conversation in a different direction.
Ollie chuckled and shook his head at their only child.
"But Hope could be in Gryffindor, Rhys," the proud father and Legilimens offered, glancing at his wife out of the corner of his eye, who merely shrugged her shoulders in her response, a smile tugging at her lips.
Norah finally broke the silence as she followed Tonks's example and propped her elbows up on the table and rested her chin in both of her hands.
"The Sorting Hat takes your choice into account. I guess we'll just have to wait and see in four years, kid. I'm sure no matter what, you'll surprise us all. You always do, Hope," she joked, looking at Hope Lupin.
Hope nodded, though her face fell and became crestfallen. Tonks let out a tiny sigh and shook her head, a light ash brown curl tumbling in front of her face as she did so, and the peaceful moment was interrupted by the sound of the train's whistle blowing, signaling the students' final boarding calls.
"Oh, Daddy, Mummy, c'mon, we have to go!" she squeaked. "Teddy's going to be late!"
"Annnd our Doomsayer departs again," Tonks grinned, wincing at the stiffness in her joints as she rose from the table, a hand on Teddy's shoulder as she steered their son to the back compartment of the train.
The proud parents paused, Ollie and Norah close behind them, saying their own goodbyes to Rhys, and Tonks sensed the prickling on Teddy's neck and his hesitations.
"You've got everything, Ted?" Tonks murmured, turning her son about by his shoulders so Teddy was facing his parents.
"Coat, trunk, Hermes," Teddy ticked off, reaching up to stroke the tiny black Elf Owl that rested on his right shoulder, to which the owl responded in kind by shooting Teddy a withering, angry look for interrupting his nap.
"Wotcher, Ted," Tonks joked, dipping into her bag for an owl treat to give to Teddy to give to the little owl to placate the creature's sour mood.
"Thanks, Mum," he murmured, his voice cracking a little bit as he glanced towards the train with a look of nervousness and excitement.
Sensing their son needed the comfort, Remus wrapped an arm around his son's shoulders and pulled him close, gently rubbing his arm.
"You'll behave yourself while you're at school, Ted," Remus muttered, only half-joking. "Don't do anything rash to get detention. And if you get out of line, I shall know about it," Lupin joked, referring to his employment as Hogwarts' Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, beloved in his job.
"Yes, Dad," Teddy said quietly. Despite the heaviness in his stomach at starting his first year at Hogwarts, it fluttered at the feeling of his body pressed against his father's.
Teddy sunk into the warmth of his father's side, appreciative of the simple gesture. His touch made the cool platform seem warmer somehow, his future at Hogwarts seeming less uncertain.
"My turn, Remus," Tonks grinned, tapping Remus on the shoulder and watching as the proud father and husband somewhat reluctantly relinquished his grip on their son, her smile widening as Teddy snuggled in.
"You're the only person I know that gives indefinite hugs, Mum."
His mum snickered. "Well, love, where else would I rather be?"
At that moment, her arms squeezed a fraction tighter as Teddy felt his mum's chin come to rest on top of his hair, and Teddy breathed more slowly, his body melting into his mum's as every muscle lost its tension to the fall air.
This was life, real life. And Tonks wouldn't trade it for anything in the whole bloody world. After several moments of just basking in the peaceful tranquility of their hug, Tonks was the first to relinquish her grip on her son when she heard the whistle of the Hogwarts Express blow a second time.
She blinked, startled, and took a step backward and would have fallen had her husband and Ollie both not shot out an arm to catch her fall.
"Thanks," she murmured, a light pink blush speckling along her cheeks. "You need to go, Ted. Go with Rhys and get good seats. Go," she urged, smiling and clamping a hand over her mouth, stifling a giggle as Rhys shot Hope a strange look that Tonks couldn't quite interpret as Hope offered a shy wave, her cheeks burning red as bright as a fresh tomato.
"You'll write to your mother and sister?" Remus questioned, an odd little half-smile on his face as he glanced sideways at Tonks and Hope, noticing Tonks's pale gray orbs brimming with unshed tears at the sight of their oldest child boarding the Hogwarts Express for the first time ever.
A truly proud moment, one she would not change for the world.
"Every day, Dad. You'll be my teacher, won't you, so I know you'll make me anyways," Teddy grinned, shooting his mum and sister a charismatic, lopsided little grin, and with one final wave to his parents and sister, he, with Norah and Ollie's son, boarded the Hogwarts Express.
"Damned I will," Remus murmured under his breath, though he was smiling. "He'll write to you and Hope every week, sweetheart."
Tonks let out a content sigh as Remus pulled her close, wrapping his arms around her, with Hope coming to stand in front of Tonks, seeming to take comfort in her mother placing both hands on her shoulders gently.
Remus's embrace was warm, and his strong arms seemed very protective when wrapped around Tonks's slender body.
The world around her seemed to melt away as she leaned into his embrace, letting out a shudder of pleasure as her husband's chin rested on Tonks's left shoulder.
Tonks didn't want the moment to end.
Norah and Ollie joined Remus and Tonks at the edge of the sidewalk of the platform, falling right into place alongside their friends. Tonks tried to focus on the Hogwarts Express departing, watching as the famous red train slowly vanished down the train tracks and beyond her line of sight.
Instead, she kept finding herself marveling at her husband and daughter, and in the midst of the celebration from the other parents who had come with the shared goal of seeing their children off to Hogwarts, said her own thank you's, to Merlin, James, and Lily Potter, Remus's parents, to her father, Ted, and to herself, most of all.
Tonks knew she would always have to maintain a balance in faith, as well as in other things. There was always going to be the divine and the human, and in the very core, the very center of her being, Tonks was more than content now.
For she felt overwhelmed with happiness from both. Remus and Tonks held one another, with Tonks never relinquishing her grip on Hope.
As the train finally disappeared from view, and the proud parents, along with Norah and Ollie, were left to return home to Wales, so that Tonks could help Remus prepare for the new term before going with him and Hope back to Hogwarts, the couple turned their thoughts away from the past and towards the future they deserved, the new world that they had helped to create so that Hope and Teddy and Rhys and all the other children could live better lives than they had during the days of Lord Voldemort's reign of terror.
Tonks firmly believed that everyone deserved a chance at love.
And she knew it sounded ridiculous that there was someone out there for everyone, but she believed in love.
Look what it had given her.
She knew that there were some who said there was no such thing as true love, that it all ends in heartbreak and pain, but Tonks firmly believed that was the beauty of it.
To have something so perfect for a while, and then for it to disappear into nothing.
It was an endless loop, never-ending, always on the move. You never knew where it would take you.
That was the thing about love. It's so beautiful and mysterious and even magical. Tonks believed everyone deserved a chance at love because they all deserved something magical.
And for her, her magic started that fateful night in the woods just outside of Barty Crouch Jr.'s estate….
How something tragic and heart-wrenching had turned into something beautiful. Some call it bewitched; Tonks called it love.
For there is an emptiness in the freedom of being alone and liberty in being caught in that divine spell.
And so, when she looked into Remus's light brown eyes and saw reflected back at her in his irises, the feelings of her heart, they became one... and if that isn't magic then Tonks couldn't say what is.
Tonks, sensing Remus was staring at her as she guided Hope firmly towards the exit of the platform, and turned back and smiled at Lupin.
Remus froze as he stared at his wife as she toyed with a lock of her hair. Dora was always so proud of her hair, but it wasn't the best thing about his wife.
Today, it fell in natural light ash brown curls and ringlets about her pale skin, so striking that it was the only thing anyone ever commented on.
But Remus barely noticed it. He could drink in her words like a strong wine and enjoy feeling tipsy. He watched her like she had the stars in her hands and soft petals at her feet. He wanted to wrap her in his arms and never let go.
When he first looked upon Dora's face, it was not on the perfect features that he dwelled—not the pale gray orbs flecked with hints of bright blue throughout, not on her pomegranate pink lips.
Instead, it was the small blemishes and insecurities that allured Remus to Dora, even after going on almost twelve years of marriage. The small scar on her forehead just above her browbone, the only reminder that Crouch Jr. had ever been after her, the shy smile, the way she quirked her arched brows.
Back in the forest all those years ago was the moment Remus had realized he had found the person who was perfectly imperfect for him.
And now, when he looked upon Dora, he lost himself completely.
All the mistakes he had ever made, of which there had been many, are gone—every impure thought erased.
All negativity was cleansed, almost like a religious experience or a kind of spiritual enlightenment, he thought.
He knew Tonks's eyes could see right through him, those pale haunting gray orbs of hers that were beautiful and unsettling at the same time, but Remus knew they did not dwell on the anger, nor the deceit, nor the selfishness from the early days of their partnership when he had behaved almost possessively over the woman who was now his wife.
She looked past every flaw to find the person inside, the real Remus John Lupin, and at that moment, as the pair stared at each other, he knew he was perfectly imperfect for her too.
And he wouldn't have it any other way.
A/N: *Tears up* It's the end (* pterodactyl screeching noises) Oh, my heart. It's breaking! My poor, poor fragile heart. It's broken. I'm going to miss this fic, but thank you to everyone who followed, favorited, and Reviewed. A Special thanks to miniandminie who has faithfully reviewed every chapter of this fic without question, and SadisticDiamond321, TillyQ, Sarah1996, timeandpixiedust, Guests, and any other reviewers that left me feedback!
Did I give Remus and Tonks the appropriate sendoff?
Was everyone pleased that Norah and Ollie got married? Technically it was off-page/screen, and I know I didn't spend a whole* lot of time developing their relationship and might have glossed over it, but considering both characters had equally tragic lives, I thought they deserved some small semblance of peace and happiness with one another and even had a kid of their own, and I think that was enough for Nollie and what counts.
So, how was my epilogue? I hope it satisfies everyone. It was a hell of a long write, but I wanted to try to give everyone the appropriate send-off rather than KILLING THEM (something I will never forgive JK for killing off my two favorite characters).
Seeing as this is my last chapter and the epilogue of this little AU Tale of mine for our favorite Auror and werewolf, I would appreciate a kind review and letting me know your thoughts!
Once again, thank you, EVERYONE! And Merlin bless you all!
